Women's Tennis Cruises Past William & Mary, 5-2

Mar 24, 2012

Camille Jania is 6-0 in singles play and 6-1 in doubles action during the dual season (photo Gil Talbot).

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The Harvard women's tennis team got back to its winning ways with a 5-2 win over William & Mary Saturday afternoon in Williamsburg, Va. The match was played indoors due to the weather.

Harvard continued its dominance in doubles, as the Crimson won its eight straight doubles point. Harvard won two out of three matches in tandem play, including wins from Hannah Morrill and Kelly Whelan and Samantha Gridley and Camille Jania. The Tribe took the first match to finish, before Gridley and Jania eased past Anik Cepeda and Marlen Mesgarzadeh, 8-1. Morrill and Whelan clinched the point with an 8-6 win over Katie Kargl and Hope Johnson.

The Crimson continued its momentum gained in singles to put away William & Mary early in the match. Harvard won three of the first four matches to clinch the win.

Hideko Tachibana was the first Crimson to win, taking down Maria Belaya, 6-3, 6-1, at the No. 1 position. Belaya was ranked No. 109 in the nation coming into the match.

Samantha Gridley followed Tachibana with a win to get Harvard within a point of victory. Gridley dominated William & Mary's Johnson, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 5 for her fifth singles win this season.

After Kristin Norton slipped to Jeltje Loomans, Camille Jania finished off the Tribe. Jania, who continued her undefeated season in singles, defeated Nina Vulovich, 6-1, 6-3, in the No. 3 spot. Jania improved to 6-0 in individual matches during the dual season.

Natalie Blosser also won for Harvard in the No. 4 position. Blosser erased a 1-0 deficit to get past Cepeda, 3-6, 6-3, 10-4.

Harvard, which has won five of its last six, is back on the courts tomorrow to take on Old Dominion in Norfolk, Va., at 10 a.m.